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(Adds details from ruling, reaction from company and
environmental groups)
By Ernest Scheyder
April 28 (Reuters) - The Minnesota Supreme Court on
Wednesday ordered state regulators to reconsider some permits
needed by PolyMet Mining Corp to build an open-pit
copper mine in the state's rural north, handing a win to
environmentalists and delaying the project.
The ruling from the state's top court comes as the United
States tries to produce more metals used in the manufacture of
electric vehicles, which use twice as much copper as those with
internal combustion engines.
Those efforts have had mixed results, with proposed mines
for lithium, copper and other EV metals under increasing
scrutiny across the country.
The Minnesota court ordered the state's Department of
Natural Resources to hold contested case hearings, which are
akin to trials, for two permits needed for the $1 billion
project, located in the state's Iron Range, about 200 miles (322
km) north of Minneapolis.
The court said regulators must reexamine the effectiveness
of PolyMet's plans to line the mine's tailings dam waste rock
storage facility with bentonite clay to prevent toxins from
leaking.
The court also ordered regulators to set a fixed term for
PolyMet's permit to mine, which had been granted initially
without an end date. Justices narrowly tailored their ruling,
rejecting a request to force new hearings for other mine
permits.
PolyMet Chief Executive Jon Cherry said the ruling was a
"big win" for the company. "We continue to review the decision
and will have more to say about our path forward in due course,"
he added.
Shares of St. Paul, Minnesota-based PolyMet fell about 1.4%
to $3.66 after the ruling. Mining giant Glencore Plc is
the company's largest shareholder.
The Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, one of the
groups that brought the lawsuit, also praised the decision and
said the state's Democratic governor, Tim Walz, should now "make
better decisions and protect Minnesotans and the water they
depend on."
(Reporting by Ernest Scheyder; Editing by Leslie Adler)
